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Clara laughed and said, “You don’t have to worry about birthing anything. Even if I was going into labor and it was right now so I didn’t have time to go to the doctor, Josh and the crew would come and help.
“Whew, that is a relief. I know to get hot water, towels, and scissors from the movies, but I wouldn’t know what to do with them.”
Clara started to laugh again, but then winced.
Zeke walked up to the counter and asked, “Mom, are you okay?”
“Yes, Baby, I’m good. She’s just engaged in an energetic soccer game right now.”
“You’re silly. You don’t have a soccer ball or a net in your tummy with her.” Zeke giggled.
“You’re right. I was just telling a joke.”
Zeke looked up at Lucy, his eyes earnest.
“I’m going to take good care of Mom and my sister.”
“I know that you are.”
Another wince and Lucy’s heart lurched. It was clear that Clara wasn’t feeling well. Lucy wrote a quick note on a piece of paper and handed it to Zeke.
“Could you and Reno take this next door to your dad?”
A few minutes later and Dillon rushed in, with Zeke and Reno hot on his heels.
Clara looked at Lucy and asked, “What did you do?”
“I sent a note saying that you were okay but that you were extremely uncomfortable,” Lucy said, crossing her arms over her chest.
“Are you okay? What’s going on?” Dillon asked worriedly.
“Just like Lucy said, I’m uncomfortable. The baby is kicking a lot and hard, and it’s a bit painful.”
“You aren’t having cramps or contractions, are you?” he asked.
“No, nothing like that,” Clara said. “I just needed to sit down for a minute.”
Dillon looked at Lucy and asked, “Can you handle the café for the rest of the day?”
“Yes.”
“You’re going home, now,” Dillon said.
Clara started to protest, but Dillon held up his hand and said, “No. Now. Get your things.”
Giving Lucy the evil eye, Clara grabbed her coat and purse. She hugged Lucy on the way out, because she knew that Lucy cared about her.
Lucy watched the family leave. She patted her own belly and thought that she would love to have a family with Micah. An image of her holding a baby popped into her mind and she smiled.
Then, her smile faded. She was getting way ahead of herself.
Pursing her lips, Lucy thought about her life.
How in the world did it get so complicated? One minute, I’m engaged in social work, helping families and children, planning on going back to school. The next minute, I’m in a completely different state working at a café.
Her heart cried out as she tried to decide what was more important – love or pride.
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